# What is the WORST immediate sequel to a great film? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [May 11, 2025, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246 "2025-05-11T07:15:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/41 "2025-05-11T17:53:26Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > but honorable mention for Temple of Doom I have no opinion on Highlander II, having seen neither the original nor II, but how could I forget the massive pile of suckiture that is _Temple Of Doom_? I guess I didn’t post it myself because I had blanked it out of my mind. There are two Indy films, no more. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/42 "2025-05-11T18:00:20Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > It has to be _The Sting II_. Honestly prior to this thread I had no idea this existed. The Rotten Tomatoes delta is a staggering 83 points. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/43 "2025-05-11T18:00:58Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > but how could I forget the massive pile of suckiture that is _Temple Of Doom_? Temple of Doom is a perfectly good and competently made movie. IT’s not as good as the first one, but it’s not a BAD movie. ---
**Author:** ![iamatractorboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iamatractorboy/32/21261_2.png) [@iamatractorboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamatractorboy)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/44 "2025-05-11T18:03:16Z")
I thought I was the only one… in no way is ToD a bad film. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/45 "2025-05-11T18:05:21Z")
Some folks are pushing the limit to what “immediate” sequel means. Terminator 3 was a fairly long time after Terminator 2, for example. Even **Highlander 2** is pretty long to be called immediate, but if 5 years is short enough, it’s my pick. **The Matrix 3** is probably one of the most shockingly bad immediate sequels, especially because I trusted the directors and I thought the second one was not anywhere near as bad as some did. > [@Odesio](#): > > While Robocob 2 isn’t a good movie, it didn’t utterly destroy the premise of the original like Highlander 2. Highlander 2 isn’t just a bad movie, it’s premise is predicated on crapping all over the first movie, slapping fans right in the face. Yeah, I’ve never heard Robocop 2 in any conversation of horrible sequels. It’s just a less good movie, a big step down…but not horrific. > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > _Quantum of Solace_ isn’t a sequel as we define them. It’s part of a series. Same as Star Trek. And it is nowhere as bad as _Skyfall._ I like QoS and Skyfall. Did everyone forget about Spectre? Don’t feel bad if you did. You should have. The one where Blofeld is revealed to be his brother. > [@GuanoLad](#): > > Does **Son Of The Mask** count as a sequel? Eh, 11 years later isn’t quite immediate. ---
**Author:** ![Limmin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f04885/32.png) [@Limmin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Limmin)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/46 "2025-05-11T18:07:07Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I’m sure that I’m not the only person on the planet who thought Terminator 2 was just stupid, and T3 was the movie that T2 should have been. There have to be at least, what, two or three of us. Count me in. T3 was fantastic. So was T2; they’re different, but I don’t see one as “better” than the other. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/47 "2025-05-11T18:40:48Z")
> [@Asuka](#): > > I legitimately think Pacific Rim Uprising is the worst quality drop in a sequel movie I’ve ever seen. Within 5 years and yet it looks WORSE than the original despite having the same budget. Another point that IMHO should have been included in terms of worst immediate sequel is keeping the same (or mostly) cast. It’s a big part of your (legitimate) complaint in the example of Pacific Rim → Uprising, because they keep the supporting cast and jettison the rest, so there’s little-to-no continuity of protagonists. Granted, the main protagonist of the first film was dishwasher dull, and almost all of it therefore went to Idris Elba’s character (with cause!) so a true continuity was impossible… but it’s different. So see my answer to the question later. > [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > > [@Tamerlane](#): > > > > Highlander (1986) to Highlander II (1991). Never has a franchise crashed so hard or burnt so bright. > > Oooh…so right about this. Not sure if Robocop 2 is worse than Highlander 2. Close call. Both are awful. Robocop 2 is terribly flawed, Highlander 2 is terrible, period, end of sentence, end of discussion. But lots of others have said it. But it had to be repeated. Forever. Until I can get a MIB flashy thing to obliterate all cinematic sequels to Highlander. IMHO, of course… THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE! > [@EllisDee](#): > > Honorable mention to Blade: Trinity. It is a truly terrible sequel, and could quality (IMHO) if it was the direct sequel to Blade (I) which is a remarkably good movie for it’s premise and content… but Blade 2 (it’s direct predecessor) was already a pretty big drop from the first. Not bad enough to be worthy of a mention in this thread, but worth a moment of consideration. * * * Having gotten all of that out of the way, I’m going with my personal judgement. It’s probably not the most technically correct answer to being the Absolute Worst immediate sequel (again Highlander II literally killed it’s entire premise in the first few minutes, and broke our minds by recreating Ramirez only to utterly waste him!), but it’s probably the most disappointing immediate sequel, with the full original cast and team. Ghostbusters II. There. I said it. The first was fun, unique, made great uses of the talents of everyone involved, and was a great favorite of mine as a child. The sequel came out 5 years later (just within the OP’s range), still had everyone involved, and had almost none of the magic of the first. Everyone, from the characters to the actors, didn’t seem to care, the plot was under-developed, the subplot was insipid, and while some of the one liners were still good, I just walked out feeling disappointed, even as a child. In terms of absolute drops, Rotten Tomatoes (which most are using) gives the first 95% (possibly with a bit of nostalgia, but still, I think it’s at least close to that), and Ghostbusters 2 55% - so a 40% loss, powerful, but not as dramatic as Highlander… but dammit, that combination of cast and crew had no objective reason to not be able to create another great (if almost certainly doomed to be lesser) effort, though all the reporting of the behind of scenes conflicts seems to have made it inevitable. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/48 "2025-05-11T18:52:08Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > It’s pushing the “immediate” because it’s 8 years after **Caddyshack** , but **Caddyshack 2** was unwachable. I came here to nominate this. My golfing buddy said “Caddyshack is the best movie ever made about golf and Caddyshack 2 is the worst movie ever made about golf.” So they span the entire spectrum. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/49 "2025-05-11T19:11:31Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > **The Matrix 3** is probably one of the most shockingly bad immediate sequels, especially because I trusted the directors and I thought the second one was not anywhere near as bad as some did The Matrix 3 is a bad movie for precisely the same reason Return of the Jedi is a so-so movie; there was never actually a plan for taking the story that far. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/50 "2025-05-11T19:18:30Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > Did everyone forget about Spectre? Don’t feel bad if you did. You should have. The one where Blofeld is revealed to be his brother. Blofeld being Bond’s brother still won’t make it worse than Skyfall (and Spectre IS bad). Silva’s plan of everyone in MI6 doing exactly the perfect thing at the perfect time transcends almost all bad plots. ANY one thing Bond or Q (stupid Q!) would have done differently would have made Silva’s plan fall apart. Not to mention Bond’s “plan”, which was unintelligible, or M running away in the dark, using a flashlight! (here I am! Shoot me!) ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/51 "2025-05-11T19:29:28Z")
I’m one of those people who doesn’t “get” the original “2001” movie. I did see “2010” in the theater, and while it wasn’t great cinema, it was a good sci-fi drama. I never heard anything good about “Airplane 2.” ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/52 "2025-05-11T19:44:18Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > > [@Czarcasm](#): > > > > It has to be _The Sting II_. > > Amen. > > On it’s own it was a terrible movie. But as a sequel to one of the greatest films ever made it’s a criminal act. Someone should have been punished for it. They were when it bombed to oblivion. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/53 "2025-05-11T20:02:51Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I’m one of those people who doesn’t “get” the original “2001” movie. I did see “2010” in the theater, and while it wasn’t great cinema, it was a good sci-fi drama. > > I never heard anything good about “Airplane 2.” _2010_ has to be seen on a big screen to be appreciated. The scene where they are crossing over between ships and look down at the swirling mass of Jupiter was stunning in the theater. It has zero impact on tv. The criticism of _Airplane 2_ being a total retread of the first one is valid. It’s still funny and has a few notable bits of its own. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/JswFF2dKiLM/hqdefault.jpg "Airplane II: The Sequel - "Over Macho Grande"") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JswFF2dKiLM) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/54 "2025-05-11T20:05:24Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > The criticism of _Airplane 2_ being a total retread of the first one is valid. It’s still funny and has a few notable bits of its own Heck, I’d argue that Shatner’s performance _alone_ should keep this movie out of this thread. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/55 "2025-05-11T20:20:05Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > Calling Pacific Rim ‘extremely good’ might just be a bridge too far for me 😀. Pacific Rim is sorta entertaining in a trashy robots fight giant monsters sorta way, but that’s about as much credit as I can muster for it. Yeah, I concur. Entertaining- yes. Great? No. > [@Tamerlane](#): > > there is always THE immortal classic. Highlander (1986) to Highlander II (1991). Apparently the Director’s cut isnt so bad. > [@GuanoLad](#): > > Does **Son Of The Mask** count as a sequel? Absolutely craptastic. But doesnt qualify here. > [@Quimby](#): > > Grease 2 (although I actually like this one a little most people hate it) Had a few decent songs, so yeah, bad but not terrible. > [@RickJay](#): > > I would nominate as a possible candidate Blue Brothers 2000. The Blue Brothers is a great movie, one of the ten funniest comedies of all time, IMHO. Blue Brothers 2000 was just so, so boring. It felt like it was eight or nine hours long. Some great music pulled it from being terrible. The ploy was terrible however. > [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > I don’t think it is at all in the running, but honorable mention for Temple of Doom which is probably worse than you remember and follows one of the best action/adventure movies of all time. It is still fun and entertaining, but yeah, so wrong after Indy 1. > [@RickJay](#): > > Temple of Doom is a perfectly good and competently made movie. IT’s not as good as the first one, but it’s not a BAD movie. Right, It was just disappointing after the greatness of the first film. > [@ParallelLines](#): > > Ghostbusters II. There. I said it. Again, a disappointing sequel after a great one. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/56 "2025-05-11T20:23:58Z")
> [@Quimby](#): > > Highlander 2 of course is probably the worst… Because it completely does away with any possible reason for the first movie. It craps all over the premise of the franchise, and makes everything illogical. Speed ][ might be a bad movie, but it doesn’t try to say "There never was a Sandra Bullock, she’s not on the cruise ship, was never on the bus… and in fact modern society _never invented the bus."_ ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/57 "2025-05-11T20:36:02Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I never heard anything good about “Airplane 2.” The biggest issue with it was that the directors/writers of the original had no involvement in the sequel, having opted to instead make _Top Secret!_. Paramount owned the original, wanted a sequel, and hired others to make it. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/58 "2025-05-11T20:38:23Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > The biggest issue with it was that the directors/writers of the original had no involvement in the sequel, having opted to instead make _Top Secret!_. And that (_Top Secret!_) was actually a very good movie (I think). Maybe not Oscar worthy but I enjoyed watching it. Maybe it helps that I know a little German. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/59 "2025-05-11T20:48:19Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I never heard anything good about “Airplane 2.” > [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > I enjoyed _Wayne’s World 2_, and _Airplane 2_. > [@kenobi\_65](#): > > The biggest issue with it was that the directors/writers of the original had no involvement in the sequel, having opted to instead make _Top Secret!_. Paramount owned the original, wanted a sequel, and hired others to make it. I really don’t see the problem with 2. So what if it wasn’t made by ZAZ, and they won’t watch it. I understand their decision, but they’re missing a good movie. It’s done in the same style, same type of humor, with most of the same cast. At the time it was new, I couldn’t tell it wasn’t “official” ZAZ. Top Secret is fine. There’s room for both. I’ll never be over Macho Grande. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2025, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246/60 "2025-05-11T21:28:52Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > Rotten Tomatoes (which most are using) gives the first 95% (possibly with a bit of nostalgia, but still, I think it’s at least close to that), and Ghostbusters 2 55% Movies are incredibly complex projects usually involving the efforts and creativity of a bunch of different people and I think their success or lack thereof is sometimes - not always but sometimes - more a matter of luck than we are prepared to admit. In most opinion, “Ghostbusters” was one of the luckiest great movies ever. It was a one in a thousand shot that those pieces would fall together as effectively as they did. “Ghostbusters II” (or any of the subsequent films) is really just the likelier outcome. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-immediate-sequel-to-a-great-film/1018246.md?page=4)